


Going Swimmingly

by Fire_Bear



Series: Pets-R-Us [4]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Fluff, Gifts, M/M, Online Friendship, Pets, Romance, Summer Festival, Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-14
Updated: 2015-09-14
Packaged: 2018-04-20 20:31:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4801265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fire_Bear/pseuds/Fire_Bear
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Four online friends meet up in Japan during the summer and, at a festival they attend, confessions are made...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Going Swimmingly

**Author's Note:**

> This is only Teen and Up because of a single swear word. =/

They had all met online, each of them huge fans of Harry Potter. By coincidence and on the same day, they all signed up for a Harry Potter roleplay site. A quiz told them their Houses and, finding that the four of them were in different Houses, provided something of a talking point. They began to chat, using the site as their platform. Then they had braved adding each other on MSN and from there moved to Facebook and Skype. As they grew older, the desire to meet had grown until, one day, when they had all managed to be on Skype at the same time, their conversation had turned in that direction and an agreement had been made.

When Arthur had settled in front of his computer that night, a cup of tea at hand, he hadn't expected the turn that the conversation had taken. He had booted up the machine and waited for everything to load. By the time he'd logged into Skype, Kiku was already in their four-way call, huddled into a blanket, a steaming cup of tea in his hands and shrouded in darkness. Alfred, meanwhile, was bathed in strong sunlight, his features prominent. In particular, Arthur could see the brilliant blue of Alfred's eyes, one of the many things that Arthur loved about him. Not that anyone would ever know that, of course, for he intended to go to the grave with that information. Matthew, however, was nowhere to be seen.

"Hello, boys," Arthur said, leaning back in his chair.

"Konnichiwa, Art-kun," Kiku replied before he yawned.

"Hiya, Art!" Alfred exclaimed, grinning and waving.

"Where's Matt?" asked Arthur, eyes flickering up to the blank square.

"Probably slept in."

"Hopefully he is on before I fall asleep," Kiku piped up, leaning his chin on his hand, his eyelids drooping.

"Hopefully!" Arthur agreed. "How are you two, anyway?"

"Good."

"All right," said Alfred, shrugging. "I'm still bored. And there're no jobs around here. It sucks."

"Ah, yeah," said the Brit. "Mum tried helping me find a weekend job but... Nothing." He shrugged and reached for his tea.

"I have been told to focus on my studies," Kiku said, smiling apologetically.

"Lucky bastard."

"No fair!" whined Alfred.

It was at that point that a face suddenly appeared in the blank square. Matthew grimaced and hurriedly apologised. "I slept in; I'm so sorry. What've I missed?"

"It's not a problem," Arthur assured him.

"We were just complaining about a lack of jobs when Keek decided to drop the bombshell of not having to get one." Alfred was pouting, his arms folded. "It's unfair. I don't want a job just yet but Mom says I have to try so I can 'learn to pay my way'!"

"But it'll mean you'll be able to buy more things," Matthew pointed out.

"Don't wanna. I wanna hang out with you guys."

"You know that doesn't happen, Al," sighed Arthur. "The time zones are too different. Apart from you and Matthew." He squashed the pang of jealousy – after all this time, he had gotten quite good at that.

"I wish I could fly out to see you two," Alfred sighed, leaning forward in his chair to prop his chin up and pout closer to the camera. "Bring Mattie and go on an adventure."

"You would need a lot of money," Kiku mumbled before he tried to stifle a yawn.

"Maybe you should go to bed, Kiku," Arthur suggested when he noticed.

"No, I'm fine." Sluggishly, Kiku waved a hand, his eyes half-closed as he stared at them.

"See? This sucks!" Alfred declared.

"We've had some interesting conversations when we've been tired," Arthur pointed out, taking another sip of his tea. "You-"

"Arthur!" shouted his mum, her voice echoing through the small house. Arthur grimaced and set down his teacup.

"Hang on," he murmured to his friends. Turning away from the computer, he called down to her. "What is it?!"

"Have you taken the bins out?!"

Glancing at his friends, he rolled his eyes at them and they sniggered. "Yes, Mum!"

There was a short pause before she replied. "Good!"

"Not even a thank you," Arthur sighed as he turned back to his friends. They laughed and he smiled at their amusement. "Where were we?"

"Talking about how being in different countries from each other _sucks_ ," groaned Alfred.

"It's not all bad," Matthew pointed out. "It helped a lot with... Well, we've learnt a lot." He was blushing and Arthur realised that he was referring to their fan fiction for a variety of shows and books. A year or so ago, he remembered that Matthew and Kiku had completely taken over a conference call to talk about Naruto and modern Japan. Matthew had written a rather riveting piece and Arthur had enjoyed reading it, despite never having read or watched Naruto.

"But I wanna be _with_ you guys!"

Sighing, Arthur leaned forward so Alfred could see him rolling his eyes. "Yes, yes. We get it. Why don't you go out there, get a job, save up and come visit one of us for the holidays. Matt would be the easiest option, of course."

"Ah, I wish I could visit Matt-kun," sighed Kiku, still looking half-dead.

"Seriously, Keek, get some sleep," said Matthew, shaking his head. The worried look did not escape Arthur.

"That's it!" exclaimed Alfred so suddenly that the rest of them jumped.

"What's 'it'?" asked Arthur, trying to catch a pen he had sent rolling across his desk.

"Why don't we meet up during the summer?" Bouncing in his seat, Alfred looked especially like a puppy. "What we do, right, is we all save up and all club together to get three of us to one of the other locations. Start with Mattie and Vancouver, then me, Artie and Keek! It'd be _awesome_!"

There was a short silence. Arthur broke it with a bark of laughter. "None of us have jobs. It's not going to work. Besides, we'll end up spending all our money during the year."

"Well, we only have to pay for flights, right? And I could convince someone to drive me to Vancouver and vice versa. Then we stay with whoever. We can all take turns to cook, too, instead of eating out."

"Huh," said Matthew, raising an eyebrow. "It _could_ work."

"Hai..." said Kiku, slowly. "I want to do that..."

Everyone blinked. "Kiku," Arthur sighed. "Go to bed. Get some sleep. We'll talk to you later. And you two have sun to enjoy, right?"

"I'm gonna put more effort into getting a job!" Alfred declared.

"I'll do that, too!" declared Matthew, grinning almost as widely as Alfred.

"Then I think this is goodbye, goodnight and good day," said Arthur, laughing as Alfred whooped and Matthew spun on his chair. Kiku laid his head on the desk. " _Bed_ , Kiku!"

There was more laughter and scattered goodbyes and then everyone ended the call. Arthur logged out of Skype and began to browse some other sites. When he popped up on Facebook, he noted that he had a message from Alfred. Blinking, Arthur quickly opened it, noting that it had been sent shortly after they had said goodbye.

_come on art do it with us!_

Biting his lip, Arthur shook his head. He didn't think they'd be able to do it – how would they be able to make plans when they'd all be busy with their first year of university. However, he had grown to really like Alfred and he didn't want to disappoint him. For a moment, he let his mind wander down a road where he really did get to meet up with the three of them. He would shake Kiku's hand, give Matthew a slightly awkward hug and-

Well, he'd like to kiss Alfred on sight.

Turning red, he cleared his throat and opened up Google, looking for job sites.

* * *

Surprisingly, despite Arthur's doubts, it all went swimmingly and they were indeed able to meet during the summer holidays. And, as agreed, they all turned up in Vancouver in the summer of 2012. Arthur got there last and was greeted by the three of them. As predicted, he shook Kiku's hand and gave Matthew a tentative hug. Unlike his fantasies, Alfred pounced on him and hugged him so tightly he found it difficult to breathe.

They chattered to each other and went clubbing; they went rock climbing and to the aquarium; they went to the Capilano Suspension Bridge and snapped pictures. Matthew and Kiku seemed to get on well and Arthur noted that they would often talk quietly to each other while Alfred was loudly bragging about something. He didn't mind as it gave him more time to talk to Alfred on his own. And they weren't limited to Vancouver as they crossed to Vancouver Island and visited other places close by. They had parted in good spirits and agreed to meet in a year in Washington D.C.

So, in 2013, they met up again, each of them grateful for the break in their studies. Alfred was excited to show them around – so much so that he forcibly dragged them from one thing to another. In comparison to the scenic locations in Vancouver, the trip to America was much more urban and modern. However, they did not forget the history: they saw the Lincoln Memorial and the Reflecting Pool, made their way to the White House and spent a couple of days making their way slowly around the Smithsonian museums. Alfred also insisted on going to the various War museums and memorials which led to a sombre day. Another road trip took them to New York for a shopping trip and down to Florida to go to the theme parks. Of course, none of them could resist scraping together enough money to buy tickets for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. All in all, they had another good time and they were much more reluctant to leave each other for the second time.

When it was Arthur's turn the next year to host, he found that he had very little chance to be alone with Alfred as Matthew and Kiku were both excited to see London and he had to focus on all of them. He didn't mind as he was equally as excited to show them around, lecturing them all on everything he knew about his beloved home city. Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, the London Dungeons (Alfred had not appreciated that), the London Eye, Westminster, Madame Tussaud's, the Sherlock Museum, Camden Market... Whereas Matthew had let them choose what they wanted to do and Alfred had picked a random direction, Arthur had a list of places to take them. He even took them trips to Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast and Dublin where they met his irritating cousins. They all had fun – but Arthur was sure that he'd caught Alfred pouting for no reason several times.

Their last year of doing this saw them off to Tokyo where Kiku had bowed in greeting. He showed them around shrines, Tokyo Tower and several food establishments with such tasty dishes that Arthur was impressed. There were also shops and sites related to anime that the other three watched; Arthur could only shrug and traipse after them. Luckily, once they had gone swimming upon Alfred's insistence (something to do with the Iwatobi Swim Club), they had climbed Mount Fuji. Kiku had even (unusually for him) insisted on going north to an onsen. _That_ had been an awkward experience for all four of them: Matthew hadn't been able to look Kiku in the face and Arthur had made sure the other two were between him and Alfred. Not that it had helped.

With the trip almost over, Kiku spoke to them over breakfast. As Arthur was helping himself to some of the white rice and the natto beans, Kiku cleared his throat. Alfred and Matthew paused in their chewing to glance up at him, blinking. "There is a festival coming up," Kiku told them.

"Oh?" said Arthur, rearranging his meal on his plate. "What sort of festival?"

"It's called the Tenjin festival and it's in Osaka. It starts tomorrow but the main procession is on the Saturday. There will be food and game stalls and fireworks. I thought it would be a good idea, if you would like."

"It sounds like an amazing idea!" Matthew gushed, smiling at Kiku. The Japanese man blushed and smiled down at his plate.

"Cool!" cried Alfred. "Let's go!" He thrust his chopsticks into the air in his excitement and the rest of them rolled their eyes.

"Would you calm down?" sighed Arthur, rolling his eyes again when Alfred stuck out his tongue. "How are we getting there, Keek?"

"We'll have to either drive there or get a train today," Kiku explained, finally able to look up. "We can leave right away, if you would like."

* * *

They did exactly that and ended up in Osaka a few hours later. The rest of the day was spent familiarising themselves with the area and eating some local delicacies. Once they had settled themselves in a hotel, they had gone to sleep, ready for the next day – which had been a little difficult for Arthur as he was in the same room as Alfred. For the first day of the festival, they had watched the preparations, though the three foreigners had felt too awkward to participate in the rituals and prayers. It felt like they would be interfering. Of course, Kiku had insisted on staying with them instead of leaving for the shrine.

On the following day, Kiku had surprised them with clothes he had got especially for them. "Everyone wears yukata at festivals," he explained. "I thought you might like to try it, seeing as you've tried everything else."

Arthur lifted the pale green material. "I don't know, Kiku... Are you sure this isn't going to insult people?"

"No, I am sure they will understand that you wish to experience the culture."

"I see..."

"Aw, c'mon, Art. You gotta," said Alfred, grinning at him. "And we've all got our favourite colours. It's super cool!" He waved his dark blue yukata at the other two: Matthew was inspecting his dull red yukata and Kiku had already dressed in a purple one.

Arthur wanted to tell Alfred that, ever since he had fallen for the American, his favourite colour had actually been the same blue as his eyes. However, he only glanced away, cheeks a little pink. "I guess. I'm just not sure on _this_ colour of green."

"What're you talking about?" Alfred moved forward – far too close – and grabbed Arthur's yukata. Raising it to head height, he glanced between Arthur's alarmed eyes and the outfit. "Yeah, see, this'll make your eyes even brighter than they are already." Arthur blinked at him as Alfred stared. Then he hurriedly let go of the clothing and stepped back. "So, uh, you should put it on."

"I will help you," said Kiku. "Once I have helped Matthew."

The Canadian blushed but nodded. "Er. All right. So, uh, can we go to the other room?"

"Of course." Hesitantly, Kiku began to make his way out while Arthur tried to catch his eye and make him stop. After the awkward conversation they had just had, he didn't want to be alone with Alfred. In fact, every conversation they'd had over the past year had been painful. For some reason, Alfred was a little more subdued and much more distracted and Arthur had never had the courage to ask about it.

Unfortunately, Kiku left without another word, Matthew following. He looked equal parts excited and nervous at the prospect of being touched by Kiku. Arthur couldn't blame him considering he felt the same way towards Alfred.

Once they had left, Arthur bit his lip, trying to think of something to say to lift the silence. Alfred shifted slightly where he stood. The silence stretched. Finally, Alfred decided to break it.

"D'ya think they'll ever tell each other they like... well, each other?"

Arthur shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe. Hopefully. They're very sweet together."

Chuckling, Alfred nodded. "I've totally been rooting for them since the beginning."

"Really?"

"Well... Nah. At first I thought Kiku might be into you. Remember that phase he went through where he kept asking you questions about England."

"Oh." Arthur nodded slowly. "Yeah, he did. I think he was wanting to write fan fiction set there. Or... Wait, wasn't he considering studying somewhere abroad?"

"Uh huh. I'm surprised he didn't. He coulda stayed with one of us while he did."

"It's a shame he didn't..." Arthur sighed, thinking of how it would have been better to live near one of them.

"Would you have wanted him to go to England?" Alfred asked, rather sharply.

Looking over at him, Arthur frowned at his intense stare. The tension that had been between them for some time suddenly grew exponentially and Arthur didn't like the almost accusatory way Alfred was asking him the question. "Would you have wanted him to go to America?" he retorted.

They stared at each other for what seemed like forever before the door opened and the other two re-entered. Matthew's cheeks matched the yukata in colour but he seemed rather happy. Kiku also looked equal parts pleased and embarrassed so it seemed like they had had a better time in the other room. Wanting to get away from Alfred, Arthur stepped forward.

"I'll go next," he offered, hastily. Matthew and Kiku glanced at each other but Kiku only shrugged and held the door open for him. Arthur almost ran out.

* * *

After all of them had gotten ready – Alfred looked stunning in his – they had all left the hotel and headed down to the streets where the procession would be passing through. As they walked, Kiku spoke up. "There will be a lot of people here so, if we get separated, just head to the river and we'll meet at the stalls."

"Okay," said Arthur, nodding in agreement. It seemed like the logical thing to do.

"If we can't find each other amongst the stalls," said Matthew, "should we try to find each other along the bank when the fireworks start?"

"Sounds like a plan!" Alfred agreed.

And so, with that fail-safe, they plunged into the crowds and moved along the roads to find a good place to stand. They were lucky – there was still space at a corner and they stopped there as people began to gather around them. Some of them gave the tourists strange looks and others even giggled as they hurried by. Eventually, they were boxed in, jostled as people tried to walk through the thickening crowd.

Then the procession started and they could hear the distant cheers and shouts as it made its way towards them. Colourful floats and costumes meandered past them. People behind Arthur jumped up and down in excitement, knocking into him. They apologised in Japanese as Arthur lost his balance. Luckily, Alfred had spotted his predicament and grabbed him around the waist to stop him falling and being trampled. The action made Arthur fall into his chest – his _very muscled_ chest – and Arthur gasped as his gaze flickered upwards. Alfred stared back, blinking at the Englishman. Hurriedly, Arthur extricated himself from the other man and straightened.

"Thank you," he murmured.

"No problem," Alfred replied, looking away. He froze. "Hey. Where did Keek and Mattie go?"

Arthur's eyes widened and he looked around. There were no purple or dark red kimonos around them; they seemed to have been surrounded by girls all wearing pink. "I don't... I don't know. We weren't moving. How did they disappear?"

"Ah!" cried Alfred, suddenly. "Maybe they did it on purpose."

Frowning for a moment, Arthur continued to look around until what Alfred meant hit him. "Ah. Maybe."

"Well... We'll just have fun without them!"

Alfred's confident grin was rather marred by the nervous glances towards Arthur. He wondered what was making him so anxious...

* * *

It took quite some time to make their way through the crowds once the procession had passed by. However, the procession was moving so slow that they arrived at the stalls before it had arrived at the river. A wonderful aroma of frying meat and sweet treats wafted over them as they approached the closest stalls. Alfred's stomach rumbled and Arthur laughed.

"Let's get some food," he suggested.

"Yes!" Alfred cried and made a beeline for the first stall selling food. It turned out to be yakisoba and they both got some, moving out of the way with their chopsticks. "Japanese food is really good."

"I enjoy it, too," Arthur agreed. "But I like Italian, just as much."

"Hm. I dunno. I think I like tacos next, after Japanese stuff."

"Actual Mexican tacos or the stuff you get in America?"

"Hey!" Alfred pouted. "Tacos are good wherever they are!"

"If you say so." Arthur paused to eat, thinking. "I think I'd like to go to Mexico. It seems like it has an interesting culture."

"What about Italy? You could go to Rome, Venice... That place with the volcano..."

Arthur laughed again. "Pompeii."

"Yeah, there. Well? Why not there?"

Shrugging, Arthur scooped up some more noodles, thinking about his answer. "Well. I'd rather not go there alone."

"Oh." Alfred seemed about to say something else but he shoved some of his own noodles into his mouth instead.

They finished eating in silence and, when they had, Alfred dragged him off to try some more food. In the end, they had yakitori, takoyaki, pre-packaged candy floss, okonomiyaki, taiyaki, dango and crêpes. The crêpes started a conversation about how much Arthur disliked France – mainly because of his annoying cousin, of course, but Alfred was amused. As they laughed and wandered along, Arthur realised that he was getting more comfortable being alone in Alfred's presence. That served to make him smile more which Alfred teased him about.

Coming across a stall which seemed to be selling ice cream – it turned out that it was shaved ice called kakigori – they paused to get some for themselves. As Alfred placed their orders, Arthur glanced around and was sure he spotted Matthew and Kiku wandering further along the corridor of stalls. They appeared to be holding hands and Arthur leaned forward to get a closer look before a bowl of strawberry flavoured kakigori was waved in front of him.

"Hey, what're you looking at?" asked Alfred, turning to gaze in that direction.

Peeking out from around him, Arthur found that he couldn't see them. Perhaps he had imagined it. "I thought I saw Matt and Keek. It can't have been, though."

"Oh? What were they doing?" Alfred scooped up some of his own treat and Arthur noticed it was blue.

"Holding hands," he answered him before prodding at Alfred's hand with his spoon. "What the heck is that? It's blue!"

"Yeah- Wait, holding hands?"

"It's luminescent!"

"D'ya think they've admitted their feelings to each other? Man, they're not allowed to before I do!"

"Doesn't that just taste of sug- Wait." Arthur blinked up at him. "Before you... do what?"

"It's Blue Hawaii," said Alfred, hurriedly, not looking at him. "Hey, wanna try it?" Quickly, he scooped up some of the ice – making sure it was covered in plenty of syrup – and held it out for Arthur.

Hesitating, Arthur glared at Alfred before finally relenting. If Alfred didn't want to tell him what he meant then he wouldn't pry. "All right, then," he said and allowed Alfred to feed him. Pulling a face at the taste, Arthur shook his head. "Urgh. No. I'll stick to strawberry."

"Uh. Huh. Sure. 'Kay," said Alfred. When Arthur glanced at him, he noticed Alfred's cheeks were red.

Shaking his head, Arthur decided to move on. "Come on." He began to walk away from the stall, catching sight of some women giggling at them.

As they continued on their way, the food stalls made way for the games. Alfred pointed to the first one. "Let's try that!" he exclaimed.

The stall itself was very simple: the sides of it were covered in balloons and there was a small table made into a trough. Within the trough was water and several multi-coloured balloons. People seemed to be trying to hook them though there were no restrictions such as standing a certain distance away so Arthur couldn't understand why they were struggling.

"What do you do?" asked Arthur, raising an eyebrow at Alfred.

"Dunno! Let's ask."

"They might not speak English," Arthur pointed out.

"Well, didn't Keek teach ya some Japanese?"

"Some – not enough to get instructions about balloons! I don't even know the word for balloon."

Alfred reached into a pocket and pulled out his phone. "We could just Google it?"

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Let me see if I can remember how to ask 'What is this?', first." So he stepped up to the stall, still clutching his syrupy ice. "Uh, sumimasen. Um. Nani... wa...? Er."

Thankfully, the stall-holder took pity on him. "Hook," he said, holding out a paper one. "Hook. Ē to... Keep."

"Oh. Thank- I mean, arigatou." Turning back to Alfred, Arthur shrugged. "You hook the balloon with one of them. I don't want to try but you can, if you'd like."

"Aw, c'mon Artie!"

Shaking his head, Arthur merely guided Alfred towards the man. "No. I'll do the next thing. I don't want to kneel in this yukata."

"Fine," sighed Alfred, pouting, and handed over his kakigori. After exchanging some yen for a hook, Alfred knelt down in front of a green balloon. He took a moment to make himself more comfortable, tugging at the yukata. Then, taking it seriously, he began his attempts. Several times, he came close to getting it and then he would drop it back in, splashing himself in the process. Arthur tried to cheer him on but, by the time his hook had dissolved into uselessness, the balloon was still floating in the water.

Whining, Alfred got to his feet. However, he was stopped by the man and Arthur watched in confusion as he was given a green balloon anyway. Happier now, Alfred bounded over and held out the little elastic hoop which was attached to it. Arthur stared at it and slowly took it. "Why are you giving it to me?" he asked, giving Alfred a confused look.

"Because," said Alfred and grabbed his kakigori.

They moved on, wandering along until Alfred spotted something else. "Let's do this! And this time you have to do it, too!"

Looking where Alfred pointed, Arthur found that it had something to do with goldfish. As he watched, a woman attempted to scoop up a goldfish but missed. Pouting, she held up her scoop, only for it to be revealed as bent out of shape: the paper had become too soft. Meanwhile, the man beside her cheered as he caught one. The stall-holder cheered as well and began to chatter to the winner, holding out a bag which was half-filled with water.

"Um... All right," sighed Arthur. "Hang on." He took Alfred's empty bowl and popped both of them in the bin.

Both of them received a scoop but, as there were so many people, there was only room for one at a time. Arthur went first. He spied a fish ignoring the others, swimming up and down the trough as if determinedly going through a routine. Ready to catch it, Arthur dipped in the scoop and chased it but it wasn't long until his scoop had disintegrated beyond use. Sighing, Arthur got out of the way, straightening his yukata as he moved.

"Aw, man. That sucks," said Alfred, grimacing at him.

"Well, maybe you'll be luckier," Arthur said, shrugging. Really, he didn't know what he would do with a fish if he'd caught one.

"Yeah!" Alfred grinned at him before hurrying forward and taking a new scoop. He settled himself in front of the trough and scanned the fish to choose one. Poised, he was still for a while, something Arthur was surprised at – since when was Alfred able to sit still? He chuckled as he realised how seriously Alfred was taking it, hiding his laughter behind his hand. Alfred didn't seem to hear him, thankfully, as all his focus was on the fish. Then, finally, his hand darted into the trough and pulled back. Before Arthur could recover from his surprise, Alfred yelled in triumph and the man hurried forward with a bag. A fish – no, _the_ fish that Arthur had failed to catch, he noticed – was dropped inside before it was tied up and the stall-holder congratulated them in Japanese.

Once he had thanked the man, Alfred hurried over. "That was so cool! I felt like a bear, fishing for salmon!"

"You don't know what that feels like," Arthur said with a snort of amusement. "Shall we move on?"

"Sure! But this is for you." Alfred held out the fish.

"What?" asked Arthur, staring at the American. "But... _You_ caught it. You should keep it."

"It's a present for you!" Grabbing Arthur's free hand, he shoved the bag at him and let go. Arthur fumbled to catch it and was thankful he did – he didn't want to see the poor thing die because of him. "C'mon. Let's go see the rest of the stalls before the fireworks." With that, Alfred hurried off and, alarmed, Arthur hurried to catch up with him.

"Hey! Wait! What do you mean by 'present'?!"

* * *

Alfred pretended not to hear him and Arthur refused to repeat himself. When he finally caught up with him, he gave Alfred expectant looks though the other only coughed nervously and looked away. He even distracted Arthur as much as possible, insisting that they both buy masks from a stall. Alfred bought himself a Hello Kitty one and forced a Totoro one on Arthur.

Wearing them on their heads as they'd seen others do, they continued to buy trinkets from the stalls, Arthur still trying to get an answer from Alfred. Eventually, they emerged from the stalls to find themselves on the riverbank. A fleet of boats were on the river and a lot of people were either standing to watch them pass or sitting on the ground to wait for the fireworks.

"Let's find Matt and Keek," said Alfred.

"I don't want to find them till you tell me why I'm holding this fish." He raised it.

Biting his lip, Alfred stared at it, as if it was something interesting. Upon instinct, Arthur looked at it and noted that the goldfish not only had white stripes but also little black spots. It was quite a pretty fish but there was no answer there.

"Here," said Alfred, coming to a decision. "Come with me." Taking Arthur's hand – which made the Brit freeze for a moment – he dragged Arthur along the bank until he came across a tree. Glancing around, he took him behind it to shield them from the majority of the crowd. "Okay. I have something to tell you."

"Okay..." said Arthur, frowning at Alfred. What on Earth could be so important that Alfred didn't want anyone else to know about it?

"Well. Uh. The reason... I... Well. Ilikeyou." Alfred took a long shuddering breath after that while Arthur blinked in confusion.

"Huh?"

"I said, I like you," Alfred said, sighing as if relieved. "It's taken me ages to say that, haha. Well, I mean, I only realised last year but, um, that's why. But if you're weirded out about it... Well, you don't needta talk to me-"

"Al, shush," breathed Arthur, clutching at his chest. His eyes were wide and he openly gaped at Alfred. How could this be possible? He'd never had an inkling that Alfred liked him more than as a friend. "I... You... Are you... _sure_?"

"What?!" cried Alfred, looking quite upset. "Of course I do! I wouldn't be saying this if I didn't! If you want to make fun of me or-or-"

Arthur reached up and rested a finger against Alfred's lips which was rather effective in shocking Alfred into silence. He could feel the American's breath as he froze, his mouth still open. "I accept the fish. And what it means."

"Oh. Okay." There was a slight pause before Alfred's eyes widened. "Really?"

" _Yes_ , really," sighed Arthur, rolling his eyes. "It's... Well... I rather like you, too, you know." Arthur frowned suddenly before voicing his thoughts. "Is this why it's been so awkward to talk to you since London?"

Alfred grimaced. "Sorry. I just got so nervous."

Laughing, Arthur dropped his hand. "Well. Now that's said and done... Uh. Should we... Should we kiss?"

"Yeah. Please."

Another chuckle escaped Arthur. It stopped as he hesitantly stepped closer. Alfred raised his arms as he did, bent at the elbow, before staying still. Arthur raised his, too, but wasn't exactly sure what to do with them. He decided to step forward again so that he was almost close enough to be pressed chest against chest. Just as he was about to look into Alfred's eyes, just as he was about to say something, a loud bang sounded above them and Arthur jumped. Losing his balance, he soon found himself clinging to Alfred's chest as best he could with his hands full.

"Holy-!" he breathed. "What the hell was that?!"

He jumped again as Alfred laughed loudly in his ear. "That'd be the fireworks, Artie." There was a sizzle and another bang as if to illustrate his point. Still laughing, Alfred placed a finger under Arthur's chin and pulled it up so he could look at him: his hand was shaking a little, Arthur noticed.

"Oh, shut up," Arthur grumbled.

"Huh. All right." And, after only another brief hesitation, Alfred leaned down to press their lips together, ignoring the lights overhead. It only lasted for a few seconds before they both pulled away with a gasp. Arthur felt his lips tingle.

"I... Again?" Arthur whispered.

"Oh, yeah," breathed Alfred.

Once more, they kissed, this time trying to angle their heads correctly to make it last. Alfred even tried to deepen it, running his tongue along Arthur's bottom lip. Just as Arthur gasped and let his lips part, someone spoke nearby and they leapt away, eyes wide at almost being 'caught'. Neither of them knew what people would do if they found them together and they weren't keen on finding out.

"L-Let's find Kiku and Matthew," said Arthur, a little breathlessly.

"Right," Alfred agreed, seeming a little dazed. He grabbed Arthur's hand and they wandered along the bank, the balloon bobbing between them. Whenever Alfred glanced at him, Arthur gave him a shy smile, impossibly happy to have something he never dreamed possible actually happen. Unless this was a dream? Oh, that would be horrible-

His thoughts were cut off as Alfred squeezed his hand too tightly, making him wince. No. It wasn't a dream. Arthur was so elated at the realisation that he didn't bother to complain and merely squeezed Alfred's hand as well.

They were passing another tree which some children were darting around when Matthew and Kiku stumbled out from behind it. Both of them were red in the face and Matthew's yukata was slipping from a shoulder. When the couple saw Arthur and Alfred, they both froze guiltily.

"Well," said Arthur, smirking at them. "I see you two are enjoying yourselves."

" _Really_ enjoying yourselves," Alfred added with a grin.

Matthew straightened himself out a little, not looking them in the eye. Kiku was also staring determinedly at the sky. Neither of them seemed willing to speak so Arthur and Alfred shrugged and also turned their attention to the fireworks.

"Oh, hang on," said Matthew after a few minutes. "It looks like you two are enjoying yourselves." Arthur and Alfred looked at him and he nodded at their clasped hands.

"Not as much as you," Arthur quipped, grinning.

The blush which had been fading deepened on Matthew's face. He mumbled to himself and sidled closer to Kiku. Kiku smiled at him and drew closer but neither seemed to have the courage to hold hands as Arthur and Alfred were doing. They all lapsed into silence.

Then a thought occurred to Arthur. "Alfred," he said slowly. The other three glanced at him, wondering what he wanted. "Alfred. You do realise that your first romantic gift to me was a fish?" He raised an eyebrow, trying to maintain an unimpressed expression.

Alfred blinked for a moment before he blushed. Quickly, he began to babble about how he would be getting him flowers and chocolates and better things. He didn't notice Arthur chuckling at him.

In all honesty, he didn't mind the fish. It would last longer than the typical gifts – if he could get it back to England, that was...

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not entirely sure how Arthur would get a fish back to England, either, but since it's not the main focus of the story... (If Arthur couldn't take it home right away, he would get Kiku to take care of it for him.)
> 
> The festival is an [actual festival](http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4023.html) that happens on the 24th and 25th of July.
> 
> The [food](http://www.japan-talk.com/jt/new/japanese-festival-foods) is all things you can get at festivals: yakitori = grilled chicken on sticks; takoyaki = pancakes with octopus in the centre; pre-packaged candy floss/cotton candy/watame is usually available; yakisoba = fried soba noodles; okonomiyaki = savoury pancakes; taiyaki = fish shaped pastry with a warm filling such as red bean paste, custard, chocolate or cheese; dango = Japanese dumplings which can be sweet or salty; and kakigori which is, of course, shaved ice with syrup on top. Alfred's flavour is actually one of the main flavours you can get.
> 
> The goldfish game is called [Kingyo Sukui](http://www.synapse.ne.jp/update/whatup/back/yatai.html) or goldfish dipping. The balloon one was called Yo-Yo Tsuri or Bon-Bon Tsuri - Balloon Catching.
> 
> Oh, and the particular goldfish Alfred caught was a [Shubunkin Goldfish](http://completegoldfishcare.com/goldfish-types/common-goldfish-types/).


End file.
